Outing: Breakfast at Tiffany's

The Morse Museum of American Art in Winter Park is expanding.  Known for the world's largest collection of Tiffany pieces, the Morse Museum also features many other American works from the 19th and 20th centuries.  Regular admission is $5, but to commemorate the opening of the new wing, visitors can explore the galleries during regular hours (9:30am - 4:00pm) and Fridays from 4:00pm - 8:00pm for free.

Fun  If you've never been to the Morse Museum, now's your chance to see it for free until March 20th.  The new expansion adds more complete rooms to the already vast collection of Tiffany works (including a reconstructed chapel).

Food  Stroll down Winter Park's scenic main street, Park Ave, to Fiddler's Green.  While the place is a quaint lunch and dinner spot, it gets flooded by Rollins students and locals at night.  The atmosphere is authentic, featuring original Irish decorations and woodworking.  Every time I go, I have to get the potato pancakes with melted cheddar and sour creme ($7.50), but the Ulster burger ($8.50) is also very good.  If you're in the mood to taste some Irish or other international beers, try the draft sampler (four small beers) for $5. 

Dessert   Just a block down the road is Austin's Coffee.  This notoriously "hipster" hangout has a good selection of drinks (coffee starting at $1.85), snacks, and desserts (baked goods starting at $1.99).  Live music on weekends.

Total Cost for a museum visit, lunch or dinner, beer, and coffee: $15.50 per person.

Central Florida Fair 2011

This year's Central Florida Fair kicked off yesterday and will go 11 days until March 6th.  Tickets at the gate are between $5 and $10, with children under 5 for free.  Highlights include nightly music and acrobatic events alongside the usual livestock and cooking competitions.  I'd go, but I'm still recovering from the doughnut burger and fried Snickers I ate at last month's South Florida Fair.

Downtown Orlando Mardi Gras Celebration

Ready to let loose one last time before lent?  No?  Well, you still might like some of Orlando's Mardi Gras events.  Universal Studios makes a big deal out of it every year (well into the fasting season, mind you), but there are much cheaper (i.e. free) and probably more authentic events out there.  Two of them include:

Mardi Gras Live
Where:  SoDo (S. Orange Ave. and Grant St., Orlando)
What:  Live music, Cajun food, entertainers, parade, non-profit benefit, free parking.
When:  Friday, March 4th: 5pm - 10pm.  Saturday, March 5th: Noon to 7pm.
More Info

1st Annual Downtown Orlando Mardi Gras Festival
Where:  Church Street Station (Church St., Orlando)
What:  Live music; outdoor and indoor stages and bars; street vendors; cigar rolling; eating contest; specialty foods and beverages.
When:  Saturday, March 5th: 5pm - 2am.
More Info

Random Video - Lake Ivanhoe

I was looking at apartments in one of my favorite areas around Lake Ivanhoe (also known as North Orange, Uptown, and Antiques Row) and came across this scenic video:

Leu Gardens Outing

I went to the Leu Gardens for the first time last week, and wish I'd gone sooner.  Although some of the color was missing (since it's still early February) and some plants got damaged in the unusual freezes from last month, the weather was absolutely perfect.  You can easily spend three hours or more meandering through the various garden areas, including tropical, citrus, and butterfly gardens.

Fun  If you've never been, you should definitely check out the Harry P. Leu Gardens, located just minutes from downtown.  Included in the $7 admission ($2 kids) are the optional tours of the Leu House Museum (every half hour).  Tips: avoid the hot season by coming in the early Spring or late Fall.  Also, free admission on the first Monday of every month!

Food  After a lot of walking, you'll be hungry.  Good thing all the great restaurants in Little Vietnam (Colonial & Mills) are close by.  I'm still working my way through them, but my favorite so far has been Viet Garden.  The food on the menu is delicious and very reasonably priced.  I like to start with the spring or garden rolls ($2.95) and then order the grilled beef with lemon grass, served on rice noodles with vegetables ($7.95).  They also serve Thai dishes. 

Dessert  Within walking distance of Little Vietnam is the Dandelion Communitea Cafe.  Specializing in organic, free-trade, locally-grown, quality ingredients, their menu features a good amount of vegetarian dishes.  But since you just ate, sit back in a big chair and enjoy some baked goods and tea (about $3) in one of many holistic businesses in this creative neighborhood. 

Total cost for a garden stroll, dinner or lunch, tea and dessert: $13.00 - $20.00 per person.

United Arts of Central Florida: ArtsFest

This is the last weekend of the Central Florida ArtsFest.  There are a lot of great free events you can check out around town.  And if you missed it this year, check it out next year!

Orlando City S.C. Update

Orlando officially has a professional soccer team: Orlando City Soccer Club.  They've been putting a lot of work into their new website, where you can read news, opponent profiles, media, team roster, and their complete schedule.  Their first game is next Saturday at 7:00PM in the Citrus Bowl and tickets are only $10 - $15.

You can follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

Black History Month 2011

In the coming weeks, the City of Orlando is hosting some cultural events in honor of Black History Month.  For example, there is the African American Business Expo will be held at the Amway Center February 17th, and African American story telling on the 21st.

This is also a great time to visit the Wells' Built Museum, showcasing Orlando's black heritage. Find out more here.

Expanding

I've been working on the "Orlando Info" tab lately, including maps and general descriptions of areas in and around Orlando.  Next up is the "Links" tab, for a hopefully thorough list of all things Orlando.  Stay tuned!